I Am No Patriot
by DeadLight63
Summary: Mark Riley, the seventeen year old male tribute of District 8, is thrown into the 69th annual Hunger Games. He brings a wide variety of skills to the Games, but his heart is not set on winning, or pleasing the crowd. His mission is to get the youngest of the tributes home. Even though he knows it will cost him his own life...
1. Welcome to the Games

Uncertainty. That is all I can feel as I ride up this tube, into what is sure to be my grave yard. Ever since the Reaping, all I can remember is that I couldn't let myself become a piece in their games. I was unique, no one could take that away from me... My name is Mark Riley. I am seventeen years old... I live in Panem... I'm in the 69th annual Hunger Games... The male tribute from District 8... In a land that was once called "The Midwest". All I know now is that I must fight. Not for myself, but that kid from 12. The thirteen year old, the youngest of all the tributes. The rest of us range from fifteen or older. One was even eighteen. The kid didn't deserve to die. We didn't either, but the Capitol is corrupt, and twenty-three of us must die. There's no avoiding this fact, death is nearly inevitable. You need more than luck and skill to win. Skill I had, and I was well liked for my goals and beliefs. But my luck could never be trusted. A nine was my score... Very good for one who did not live 1, 2, or 4. Still, I was going to die. I had to if I was to accomplish my goal. White... That is all I can see for a moment. I breathe in... taking in what could be my last few minutes on Earth. The bloodbath was where all the relentless killers went, taking their tools of destruction. The white fades... And I can see the arena. A jungle, the humidity is unbearable, and I can already hear the sounds of wildlife. If we were lucky, the wildlife would be natural, like bears, lions, etc. Unfortunately, the Capitol more likely had something much darker in mind for us.

"30 Seconds." I hear from nowhere. It is the announcer, what's his name. I never bothered to learn his name, never cared. And I never will. Around me are my fellow twenty-three tributes, all preparing for the next few weeks ahead of them. I was ready. I had accepted my inevitable death. I would die to let the youngest of us go home. If the Capitol did not agree with what I did, then they can go to hell. I am no patriot. I do not love my country, it is founded on hatred, and violence. I always wished I could have seen what it was like before, the great nation known as America. I knew very little of it, but I knew that it believed in equality, liberty, life. If only...

"10... 9..." I prepare myself, getting ready to launch off of the pad. The cornucopia lay in front of me, with weapons, supplies, and more. Of course, all I wanted was to get my journal started. The journal that I had been keeping ever since the Reaping. The one thing that I was allowed to keep from home was a journal. Still, when the gong sounded, I shot off, getting what I could carry. I quickly scooped up a backpack, which could certainly come in handy. Everyone ignored a tarp on the outer edge, but I did not. Before I could grab a bag full of knives, I was attacked, the girl from district 5. I did not wish to fight her, but I needed a weapon. She struck at me with her fist, but I quickly moved away. She attempted to strike again, but by now, I had the knives. I took one from the bag and held it out, stabbing her in her abdomen. Her violet eyes stared at me with sadness, and hatred. Anger, and contempt. As she collapsed, I kneeled down, placed a hand on her head, and said;

"Forgive me." With that, I thrust the knife through her neck, ending her suffering. Looking up, I see the male tribute from 2 charging at me, a sword in hand. I quickly sling my backpack over my shoulder and take off. I can hear him roar, and he charges after me. I do not slow down, however, I do not even look behind me. For I hear the cry of another, a male. He is going to intervene, not to save me, but to attempt to kill a career. I hear the clanging of metal, and quickly vanish into the trees. With haste, I twist, and swerve, trying to make my path complicated, and impossible to follow. After about ten minutes of this, I stop, and look behind me. No one is there. I have escaped the Cornucopia. I can only hope the boy from 12 shared my fate. Looking forward, I observe the massive jungle that lay ahead of me, where the humidity has grown noticeably worse, and I can already hear buzzing in my ear from insects. I smile. I've always loved camping.


	2. Setting Up Camp

Kneeling down, I observed my surroundings more carefully. The trees were large, and well built. These would no doubt be very useful in constructing fires. There were many different types of moss in this jungle, and while I did not recognize some, others came to me quickly. Vines would also prove useful, as I could easily use them to block an opponent's path. I look behind me, and there is nothing there. I relax slightly, and take my backpack off. I place it in front of me, and remove the tarp I had wrapped around it. The tarp was large enough to fit a large, and small person underneath of it. Throw some mud, moss, and dust from rocks on it, and you had cheap camouflage. I threw open the backpack, somewhat eager to see what spoils I had obtained from my brief time at the Cornucopia. Inside lies a sap collector, two loaves of bread wrapped in tin foil, a compass, a lighter, and a small canteen with water. Strangely enough, the sap collector was my greatest tool at the moment. I knew a particular type of sap that burned really well, and I could use other materials that I would obtain later on to make a makeshift lantern. The rest of the items were pretty self explanatory. Going camping in the vast wilderness of my home would serve me well. I had been ready to be called into the arena, although I wasn't actually HOPING to get in there. Regardless, I was ready to fight, win, and come home to support my family. However, when I discovered that a thirteen year old had been selected from District 12, I knew that I had to get him home. He was just a kid. Kid's don't deserve death. The rest of us? We're not kids. We're young adults. I hate to belittle the guy, but I don't consider thirteen to be a young adult, that age was fifteen in my opinion. I could hear a cannon fire, and jumped at the sudden sound.

"Just the cannons." I tell myself. I listen, and count along with how many shots I hear. One shot is quickly followed, and drowned out by another shot. And another... And another... Until I hear a total of eight cannon shots. Eight deaths on the very first day, somewhat low compared to some other years I've seen. Careers must have been sloppy this time around. Counting the girl I killed... I groaned and spit, disgusted by the sound of those words. Me... Killing an innocent... To save myself? I sigh and shake my head, I knew that I was fighting for no greater purpose. No great kingdom, not some group of people, nothing. All I could say I fought for was my district, and even that seemed like building a foundation on a beach. No, I was fighting for the kid, that was a purpose. Still... Is one life worth twenty-three? The capitol seems to think so. I shake my head, and pack my rewards into my backpack. I could not focus on my thoughts right now. I needed shelter. I rolled up my tarp as small as I could get it, and placed it into the backpack. Well, more like crammed it in there, but I got it in is the point. I threw the garment onto my back, strapping it onto myself tightly as I observed the knives in the sack. Some were curved, which I had no interest in. True, a knife is a knife, but I don't see the reason to make it look fancy. You use it for the same reason, so what was the point. I found a medium sized one, easily carried in one hand. A well placed stab could probably pierce a major organ. Still, it was lightweight, and could be hidden with relative ease. This would be my weapon of choice. I placed it on a hilt in my belt, and used it to cut a vine from one of the trees. Already I could feel the sweat pouring out of my glands. I had to save my water, however, and decided I would only have a little bit every three hours or so. This wasn't the forest back home, after all. I took the vine and used it to create a complicated knot, tying the bag of knives to my waist.

_9 Hours Later..._

I collected the last bit of sap from the collector, placing it on a small twig. Carefully, I placed the twig underneath a group of leaves and logs I had made for my fire. This could draw attention, but I would hear those imbeciles coming from a mile away. These careers had clearly not taken stealth seriously, preferring to focus on the up close and personal aspect of the fight. That was just fine with me, easier evasion. It was starting to get dark out, and I could already hear a group of owls begin to hoot. Crickets chirped as I used my lighter to ignite the sap, and watched it turn into a slow blaze. Contained, this could form a useful lantern that would burn as long as you had a ready supply of sap. However, uncontained, such as now, it would slowly spread into a large fire. I blew on the fire, trying to give it more oxygen to make it stronger. Behind me, my tarp has been caked in mud, moss, various types of insect blood for scent, and has even had rocks dumped on it to give it a darker shade. If not for my bag of knives marking it, I couldn't have seen it. I sat beside the fire, listening as the wood cracked, and the sap hissed. I thought about my little sister, Megan. My whole life, fourteen years old and tough as nails, almost like me. Truthfully though, she was delicate, and opened up to those she trusted. I was such a person, and I knew every secret, and thought she had. Not that she minded, she knew my mind set and thoughts as well. We loved each other deeply, and I could only hope she was okay now. I sigh and reach into my shirt, where I have stored my journal. A small, concealable thing that was given to me by my father. I was originally going to use it to detail my camp outs in the forest, but now it would serve as my diary for the events ahead. My father and mother... Two more people I know will miss me. Always doing their best to provide, usually in vain. We weren't poor, and we definitely didn't live off the scraps, thanks to me bringing various birds and vegetables back from camping. Still, it seemed as though we were living pay by pay, and my parents always felt like they weren't doing a good job.

"Just a leaf in the wind..." I said to myself as I heard the anthem of Panem. Unenthusiastically, I looked up into the sky, where the symbol of the Capitol appeared in the sky. As the music of the anthem slowly became more upbeat, and quick, the image quickly changed to the words 'The Fallen'. This was done everyday in the Games, unless no one had died that day. But there were always deaths on the first day. The music continues, and the image quickly changes to that of the male tribute of district 3. Quickly replacing it is the image of the girl from that district. Not unusual for one district to be eliminated right away, this was the twelfth year in a row it had happened. Next was the girl from District 5, and I lowered my head, whispering my apologies to her. The boy made it, but the male from 7 didn't. The female from my district was dead too, which caused me a slight pang of guilt. There was nothing I could have done, of course, but the fact she was from my district made me feel partially responsible. The male from 10 had also been killed in the bloodbath. I held my breath and crossed my fingers as I waited for it to change again... and saw the girl from District 11. I let out a sigh of relief. The kid was still alive. He had survived the Cornucopian bloodbath, and was still out there somewhere. All I had to do was find him. The anthem gives it's finishing flourish, and vanishes into the night time sky, leaving just the sound of crickets, owls, and other wildlife. I leaned back on a tree and pulled out a pencil I kept in my pocket, and began to write in my journal. As far as I could tell, it was still the 14th of May. So that was what I marked my Journal entry.

_14th of May, Diary Entry #1_

_I've made it through my first day of the games, just like I had expected too. Fortunately for me, the kid has made it through as well. Why no one volunteered for him is still a mystery to me, but he is here now, and I am taking it upon myself to get him home safely. The arena is a strange, jungle like climate, with horrendous humidity and who knows what kind of wildlife. Of course, I'm more concerned about the devilish mutants that the Capitol has no doubt set up for us in this year's games. But nothing will compare to that of the other tributes. They are merciless, and only wish to fight for glory, power, and money. The only ones who do not fight for these cause are those of 11 and 12, one of which contains the boy I am going to help. When I'm dead, I'm going to ask him to take this journal to my family on his victory tour. For now, I will wait till' morning, then work out what I will do from there. It's like my father always says ; "It doesn't matter how strong, or smart you are if you don't have the energy to use it."_

_ - Riley, M._

Relaxing, I put my pencil by my bag of knives, and my journal on top of my backpack. I adjusted myself into a lying down position, placing my head on a soft gathering of moss on one of the logs. Not exactly luxury treatment, but it would work for me. My tarp lay above me, blocking me from the sights of those far away. I turn slightly, and support my head on my hands. Looking over to my right, I watch as the fire slowly grows brighter. I smile, and think of my family as I drift off into sleep.


	3. Light Up the Darkness

I awoke to the sounds of footsteps. My head darted upwards, and I looked around me. Nothing. Still though, I heard footsteps. Careers. They were the only group of people who would stay on the offensive for so long. I wasn't an idiot, they were trying to find unsuspecting tributes, and pick them off in their sleep. I wouldn't be such an easy target though. With haste, I grab my bag of knives, and my backpack. I leave my campfire burning, which will give them something to head for. My tarp comes with me though, there was no telling when that thing would come in handy. Without making a sound, I slip behind me into the far reaches of the trees. I make sure to twist, and curve, making my path complicated and strange. Eventually, I stopped, and looked behind me. Even from here, I could see the fire, and what looked like every single member of the career pack. I wasn't scared to fight them, but I wasn't stupid either. Six on one was hardly a fair fight, and I knew it. My best bet was to keep low, and avoid their patrols until they turned on one another, then pick them off one by one.

"Man I told you there was someone here!" I hear one of the males shout. This one is the tribute from District 1, a sixteen year old. He excelled in sword and shield combat, which was what he carried. Although I hadn't actually been on the other side, taking him on, I knew what he was capable of. I had seen him cut two dummies in half with one slash, he was going to be a tricky one to take care of. A tall one, obviously aggravated, turned to face the other male. This was the one from District 4, the eighteen year old. I didn't know what to think of him, I hadn't seen much of him except when our scores were presented. Since he got a ten, I knew he was dangerous, although I didn't know what with. He shoved the one tribute, and got into an argument with him about questioning his authority. I shook my head and backed away, falling back behind a tree. I could hardly see anything in the jungle, and I knew I needed to make that lantern. Backing away again slightly, I feel my hand rub against a large bush, and grab onto it. It's covered in vines, luckily for me. If I played my cards right, I could use it to hold what I would use to carry the sap together. Problem was, I didn't have anything to hold the sap. Save for my canteen, but there was no way I was going to turn that into a lantern. I knew that jungles had almost no water in them, and from the way the trees were, I'd say they were altered by the Capitol to grow with very little water. That's when it dawned on me. The only people who had something I could use to make the lantern were the Careers. Sponsors were available, but calling one in took time, money, not to mention it would give me away. I was going to have to do this on my own. I sighed and shook my head. If there was one thing I didn't want to do, it was stay near these killing machines. Still, I didn't have a choice. Without a light, I was a sitting duck to any predators nearby, and I couldn't just light anything I wanted to. I'm surrounded by wood after all. Reluctantly, I place the vines around my backpack, wrapping it around it horizontally. I place the bag of knives at my side, and turn away from my cover in the tree. I hide behind a bush, and watch as one of the female tributes, from 2 I think, breaks up the feuding men. I duck down, moving silently through the brush. They haven't spotted me, and they seem to be discouraged.

"You know what screw this! It's late, I'm sweating my butt off out here, and this place freaks me out at night." The eighteen year old says. I shift my weight, and make sure to keep myself balanced between a tree and a gathering of foliage.

"Need your night light tough guy?" The sixteen year old one asks. The girls chuckle at this one, although the tribute socks him in the arm. I just duck down, and keep a low profile.

...

I followed them all the way back to their camp, which was stationed just outside of the Cornucopia. Typical Career tactic, charge the Cornucopia and take all the valuable, and best supplies. Every once in a while, a few tributes would get lucky, and a few of the precious supplies. One look at the blood puddle in front of the Cornucopia told me that this wasn't the case for whatever pour soul was brave, and dumb enough to try and get into that opening. A group of careers stashed a large tote, carrying large glass containers filled with water, and I know that that's my target. Glass wouldn't melt in the fire caused by the sap, and was very lightweight.

"Target... Marked..." I whisper to myself as I adjust myself, bringing my tarp over me. For a while, all I can see is darkness, but still... I can hear their conversations.

"Whose fire do you think that was?" I hear a female voice ask.

"I don't know. Maybe it was that one guy from District 12?" He hears another say, also in a female voice.

"No way, he was way to inexperienced to get away that quickly." I hear a male voice argue. I considered this. The kid did only receive a six during the training, something most would have instantly disregarded as a wasted effort. But not me.

"Well alright genius, who do you think it was?" Another voice asks.

"That dude from 8. He's been showing us up ever since we got into the games. I hate that stupid little prick..." The one from before said.

"Yeah you may be right... He acts so high and mighty, and righteous, it's disgusting. He thinks that he's so much better than us. Well, he isn't. Whatever his "goal" is, I'm going to make sure that the little idiot he wants to save gets a slow, painful death. And then, when I find that douchebag, I'll make sure he gets a REALLY righteous death." I heard the eighteen year old say. I gave a disgusted shake of my head, and grit my teeth. This... degenerate had no right to be talking about anyone. I quickly breath easily, and wait, being quiet as I can be. I could not blow my cover, or I would die before I could get a chance to help the tribute from 12. I listen to them talk for a few more minutes, and hear one of them say they are going to sleep for the night. Two say they will stand guard, and watch in shifts. I thought for a moment. These careers were definitely guarding their stuff well, keeping two guards posted at all times. I would have to be careful on how I dealt with this. I lift the very front of my tarp, and see four bodies sprawled across the ground, sleeping away. In front of the opening to the Cornucopia, is one guard. Strange... I could have sworn I heard two say they would stand guard... Where was the second? I waited a few moments, and received my answer. The other was patrolling around the outskirts, making sure no one came from behind, or the sides. I gave an impressed nod, these careers were smarter than I gave them credit for. Those jars would be somewhat difficult to obtain. Carefully, I lift away my tarp, and crawl over to the side of the Cornucopia. I lie in the tall grass, hidden by the tees. The patrolling guard came around, holding a spear in his hands. He looked over to me, and I held my breath, praying that he didn't see me. Fortune must have been smiling on me, because he walked right past me. Carefully, I rose to my feet, and walked slowly to the guard. My feet were as light as feathers, my breathing, quiet as snow touching the ground. As I came behind him, I kicked him in his knee, bringing him down. With haste, I covered his mouth, preventing him from screaming. I also wrapped my arm around his neck as he struggled.

"Shh..." I whispered as I continued to strangle him. He struggled for about fifteen seconds, then went limp. Passed out. Carefully, I grab him underneath his armpits, and drag him to the foliage, hiding him. Once he is out of view of any passers, I move to the side wall of the Cornucopia. I place my back against it, making sure not to make the slightest noise. I reach the turn of the Cornucopia, and peak my head out. The guard is still standing there, and I recognize him as the one with the sword and shield. He looks to the opposite direction of me, and I sprint over to him. I quickly pounce on him, covering his mouth and holding a pressure point on his neck. Back home, I had wanted to be a doctor, and I knew the human body well. He struggled a few moments, then went limp as he stopped thrashing. I hold my breath, looking around to the other careers. None have awoken. With a sigh of relief, I leave the unconscious guard, and started looking through the totes for the jars of water. It was on the third tote I checked that I found it, inside lay dozens of jars. It was tempting to just grab as many as I could and run, but I needed to be quick. I grabbed the one jar I would use as my lantern, and looked over to the sleeping careers. With haste, I ran back into the forest, not stopping until I lost sight of their camp...

...

Carefully, I poured my recently collected sap into the now empty jar. I had placed what water I could in my canteen, then just drank what was left. That was extra water, something that I wouldn't have for quite some time now. The sap slowly dripped along the side of the jar, almost making it look like a gooey caterpillar. I placed it on the ground, and searched through my backpack for my lighter, and made sure not to grab the vines yet. I felt something plastic touch my hand, and grasped it. Due to the fact it was thin, not bulky, like my canteen, I knew it was the lighter. I pulled it out, lit it, and held the flame in front of my face. I looked around me, at the now revealed foliage and tree critters. I smiled. I always took note of the fact that even the smallest bit of light drove out the darkness. I don't know why, but it gave me hope. Snapping out of it, I brought the lighter to my bag of knives, looking through it. I need a knife that was small, and could be used to pierce the lid of the jar. I needed to make a handle for me to carry the lantern, otherwise I would be lugging around a jar of hot glass, burning my hands at every turn. I move aside a large knife with a curved edge, and find a knife with a large base, but comes to it's point in a small, sharp tip. Almost like a spear. I carefully reach down and take it in my hands, making sure not cut myself on the other blades. As I wrap my hands around the handle, my lighter flickers, and goes out. Confused, I strike it again, and it lights again, and I shrug it off.

"Guess it's just a little old." I say as I pull out the knife and grab the lid of the jar. I hold the lid above the backpack, and gently place it on top. I place my hand flat on top of the lid, keeping it in place. I place my knife down, and search around for a rock to take my hand's place. After some searching, I found a decently sized rock to keep it down, and grasp it. I place it on top of the lid, and reclaim my knife. I analyze it, trying to determine where the weakest points of the jars are. All I can see is a small dent in the right side, and decide to use that. I shove the knife through the side of the lid, creating a grinding noise as I slowly drive it through. I twist the blade slightly to the left, which takes a decent amount of effort, but increases the size of the hole. I repeat this to the other side of the lid, when a thought occurs to me. I look back over to my back pack and wonder if the vines could hold out in the heat. Deciding not to wait, I grab one of the vines under one of the loaves of bread, and bring it out. I observe the vine, then my lighter. I sigh, and bring the open flame of my lighter to the vine, and observe what happens. To my surprise, and delight, the vine does not light on fire, or even start to turn a darker color. I turn my lighter away, and bring the vine closer for inspection. I can't see anything unique about it, but I guess the Capitol must have done something to it. I shake it off, and take the rest of the vines from the bag. I screw the lid back onto the jar, cutting out a small part where I can pour in sap and keep the lid a little cooler. I tie a knot through the two holes in the sides of the lid, and wrap it around in an X fashion around the rest of the jar. Finally, I take my sap collector, and stick it into a tree. The sap begins to flow out of the tree, and I bring my lighter close to the lid. Just as the sap begins to fall into the hole, I light that sap on fire. It sizzles lightly and ignites slowly as it falls into the rest of the sap. Slowly, it forms a large blob of fire on the top layer of the jar, which I have filled to it's half way point. I pull my lighter away and extinguish it, leaving me in the light of my lantern. It provides a good two foot ring of orangeish-yellow light around me, giving me a good idea of where I'm going. I smile. My plan has worked. Satisfied, I pack my things, and sling my backpack onto my back, and keep the tarp inside. Looking around to a large, oval shaped tree, I set out, beginning to look for a safe spot to camp for the night.


	4. Hurt

_17th of May, Diary Entry #4_

_The arena has been rather quiet as of late. I haven't seen another tribute in over 24 hours. I still have no idea where the boy from 12 is. I know he isn't dead, his image never arrives at night. Still, I don't think he can make it alone. At the very least, I'm doing alright. The careers haven't found me ever since I stole that water jug, which I am thankful for. I still go back to the Reaping... When Megan threw her arms around me and wouldn't let go... I don't even want to think of how she'll be when I'm gone. Still, I have to stay focused. Today I'm going to travel East, or at least try. Direction is hard to tell in this jungle, and there are no real landmarks. I'll figure something out._

_- Riley, M._

I closed my journal, and paused for a moment. The games were really starting to get to me. My dreams were filled with home, my parents, my sister, all my friends. They knew what my goal was... I had said I wouldn't be alive if I achieved it in my interview. Of course, they all know me well enough to know what I meant. At least they'll have my journal. If nothing else, they can remember my thoughts, and my experiences. I hope they can let me go. Sighing, I placed my journal back in my pack, and grabbed my bag of knives. The one knife I had set aside as my main weapon was clutched firmly in my right hand.

"Into the jungle I go..." I said calmly as I set out. Pushing away a branch, I stepped forward into a large batch of leaves, which were still green and healthy. If nothing else, they could be a replacement for my lantern if I needed it. But I wouldn't need it, at least not for a while. The humidity of the jungle beat down on me, making me sweat from both my palms, and my forehead. My body begged me to have some water, but I kept myself restrained. My water had to last, there was no natural water in these trees. They were capitol trees, freaks of nature, forced to do something... Not natural. All they had was sap, which was fine, but still... Some extra water would be nice. I sigh and shake my head, trying to get these thoughts out of my head. I looked up to the treeline, and see several birds flying around. The combination of blue, white, and red makes me smile, and I think about my previous encounters with birds. Back when I was camping. They helped me remain hopeful, spreading their wings no matter the conditions. They always pressed on... Even if it was raining. That's how I am I guess. Always trying to push forward. I look back to the jungle ahead of me, and see a large branch crossing over my path. I place my hand on the bark of the branch, and lower my head under the tree. As I begin to move my hand away, I notice a soft pain in my hand. I bring it up to my face, and see a small scrape. Not enough to bring any blood, but enough to let my body know.

"The trees must not like me." I said with a smile. I chuckled and shook my hand to get some air to the scrape, and then clutched it into a fist. Suddenly, there was a growling. My smile vanished, and I turned to the direction of the sound, holding my knife in front of me. I eased my breathing, and focused my hand to steady. One loaf of bread didn't really feed you very well, and I hadn't killed any animals yet. My body was admittedly much weaker than normal, to the point my hand was shaking slightly.

"Who's there?' I ask with a calm tone. Silence. For a moment I think I imagined it, but then the unknown creature growls again. I take my other hand, and flip open my bag of knives. I briefly look down to it, seeing my large assortment of knives. One was much smaller than the others, but was straight, and didn't have any fancy features. Hastily, I push the other knives aside, and grab it's hilt. The handle is about the size of the blade, and it fits into half of my hand. I hear another growl as I turn back to the sound, and go into a battle stance. This was a mutt. I knew it. It had to be. There couldn't be another explanation. Regular animals tried to avoid humans, wolves, bears, tigers, they never attacked first unless you were literally IN their den. This had to be a mutt.

"I'm not scared of you..." I say calmly. I hear a fierce roar, and that's when I see the claws. A strange, orange beast leaps out at me, roaring loudly. I grunt and slash with my knife, hitting it in it's leg. It lets out an infuriated cry and leaps at me again, this time pinning me to the ground. I groan as my head smacks onto the ground, luckily hitting leaves rather than a root. I growl and drive my knife into the beast's side, gaining a slight whimper. Quickly, I use my legs to push the beast off of me, and try to stand. I can already tell I'm bleeding from the small blood drop on one of the leaves, but I don't know where. I breathe heavily as I bring my remaining knife to my front, switching it over to my right hand. The beast growls at me, it's cold, black eyes staring at me with hatred. I exhale loudly, and await it's action. The beast stares at me a moment, trying to comprehend and understand me. If it's looking for a weakness, it may as well give up. I'm not afraid of any beast, not even one that's capitol made. The beast roars and charges at me, and I do the same. When I reach the beast, I try to stab it, but it somehow anticipates this. It slashes my knife hand with it's claw, causing me to shout in pain and drop the knife. It leaps onto me once more, forcing it's weight upon me. It stares at me hungrily, and opens it's mouth, quickly moving down to my neck. I shout and throw my hands up, grabbing the upper and lower parts of it's jaw. I struggle with the beast, keeping the beast's jaw wide open. I groan in defiance, and push the creature away from me, as it continues to thrash at my resistance. I roar in anger and kick the beast again, forcing it off of me. I breathe quickly, and look to my right. The knife I dropped is still there, shining in the scan amount of sunlight that breached the canopy. I grit my teeth and reach out to grab it, but the beast once again apprehends me. It drives it's claws into my back, forcing me to stop and scream in pain. Angrily, I reach to the extent of my arm, and grasp the tip of the blade which was closest to me. I thrash around, trying to keep myself from becoming easy prey. I finally turn the knife around to it's handle, and I take it firmly in my hand.

"Get off of me you abomination!" I shout as I turn and drive the knife into the creature's neck. It whimpers in pain, and thrashes away at my chest, causing more blood to escape my body. I shout angrily and kick it once more, sending it off of me. I try to stand, I'm out of breath, and can't breathe. I gasp heavily as the beast continues to whimper and give cries of pain. I angrily look up to it, and pull out another knife. I accidentally grabbed the blade rather than a handle, causing a sharp pain to erupt in my hand. Ignoring it, I roar one last time and throw the knife at the mutt, hitting it in it's head. Finally dead, it falls over on it's side, my first knife sticking out of it's side. I stay put for a moment and hang my head, panting heavily. I had just survived a mutt attack... But I felt like I couldn't move. Blood was pouring out of almost every spot in my body, and I felt a horrible exhaustion. I place my hand on my knees, and groan in pain as I force myself upwards. I limp over to the beast, and grab my knife. It's orange fur is tinted in blood, making it somewhat sticky when I pull my knife out of it's corpse.

"Worthless mutt..." I say, out of breath. I turn to continue in my journey, but I nearly collapse again. Whimpering, I throw out my arm and grab a branch as my legs fail me. I feel something down the corner of my eye, and I know it's a tear. I breathe heavily as I try to focus my vision on something. To get something else in my mind rather than the pain. I groan in pain as I imagine Megan, watching the games from home. Is she crying? Is she traumatized? Is she sitting there, whispering encouragements I'll never hear? I look up to the tree line, and stare into the trees. I know she's praying for me, hoping I'll come back. We both know I don't want to though. I can only imagine how much pain she feels. I close my eyes and grit my teeth as I force my body to stand. Leaning against the tree I used to get me up, I look into the boundless foliage ahead of me, and sigh. I groan in pain as I force my body forward, using the trees to keep my body up. Every touch leaves a blood stain on the bark of the wood, reminding me of just how badly I'm hurt.


	5. Escaping the Pack

I placed my hand on the trunk of the tree, with the sudden pressure instantly stinging my wound. Ignoring the pain, I pushed off of the tree's trunk and groaned as I continued on through the jungle. I had covered some of my wounds by using leaves as a sort of bandage, but it was by no means a good way to cover them up. The leaves were covered in some sort of lubricant that made them sting and burn the second they touched flesh, and even more so if it was bloodied. And sicne I had open cuts and bruises on my skin, I felt like I was going through a literal hell. Looking around the foliage of the jungle, I could hear the numerous chirpings of crickets, and other animals in the area. I wondered why there had to be so many trees, before I noticed a sound completely alien to the rest of the nosie in the jungle. Whimpering. Not from some dog or a mutt, but a person. Stepping forward, I try to block out all other noises, focusing instead on the whimpering. It was close... Almost like it was right in front of me.

"Hello?" I asked into the vast sea of green. Carefully, I stepped over a large root as I moved forward, with the whimpering becoming steadily louder as I came closer and closer. I came upon a large grop of vines, forcing me to bring out my knife to cut them away from my path. Groaning from the effort, I stepped through the passage, as I began to hear soft whispers in sync with the whimpering. I couldn't make out what they were saying, but I could tell that it was a girl making the sounds. As quietly as I could, I stepped forward, making sure to avoid any sticks that laid across the ground. The sound was coming from the left now, and I turned my head that way. What I saw was not a pretty sight. I reeled back slightly in horror at my discovery, sickened by the sight. Laying there was the girl from 12 with her insides coming out of her stomach. She must have heard my approach, because she weakly turned her head to me. Her face was paler that a new bed sheet, and her eyes were red, with tears strolling down her face. She tried to say something, but it was too quiet for me to hear. Looking to my surroundings, I made sure there was nothing that could spring out and attack me before getting closer.

"Don't worry... I'm not going to put you in anymore pain..." I said calmly as I placed my knife away. The girl wheezed uncontrollably, but then steadied her breath moments after. I carefully knelt down beside her as I realized just how bad she was. Her small intestine had been pulled strung away from her body, lying across the grass and dirt. In addition, her liver, stomach, part of her large intestine were merely leaning against the sides of her body. Whoever, or whatever had done this had wanted her to die slowly, and painfully. It made me sick knowing that someone or something got pleasure out of this. More than likely it was one of those mutts. The girl reached her hand out, her eyes barely open now. I didn't know what she was trying to do, but I grabbed her hand, seeing the pain that was defining her face. Still aimed at me, she said in a barely audible tone;

"Please... Kill me... It hurts too much..." She was clearly straining to make words, almost like it hurt to speak. I looked down to her midsection again, then back up to her. Her eyes were still trained on me... And it was like she was asking me with only her look. I sighed and nodded my head, bringing out my knife. I gently placed it on her throat, keeping it clutched firmly in my hands.

"I'm sorry this happened to you..." I said as I dragged my knife across her throat. Her eyes closed as I heard one long breath, then nothing. The sounds of the jungle continued to fill my ears, but I only saw the girl. She didn't deserve to die like that, it was nothing but barbaric in every way, shape, and form. Inhumane. And the capital didn't care, as long as their stupid message got across. I still didn't understand. Hadn't enough blood been shed in the rebellion? I get there had to be some sort of disciplinary action, but why kill us? The future of the country? Slaughter was not the answer! Shaking my head, I set the girl's hands on her chest as her cannon went off, alerting the rest of the tributes to her demise. As I stood up, still looking down at her. Aside from her gruesome wounds, she seemed more like she was asleep, rather than brutally attacked. I felt a little guilt over killing her, but not as much as my first. This was purely a mercy kill. I had ended her suffering.

"Rest in peace..." I said quietly as I turned away from her, starting to go back the way I came. Suddenly, I heard a growling, causing my stomach to tense up. Looking to my right, I could several pairs of eyes looking at me, all of them the same color as the beast that had attacked me earlier. Looking to my left, I saw even more sets of the eyes, none of them looking friendly. Only now does the realization dawn on me. The girl died because she had wandered right into their den, and they were defending it. And now I was invading their home as well.

"Of course..." I thought to myself. Not wasting any time, I took off sprinting as fast as I could, as I heard fierce growls and roars from behind me. My legs weren't hurting as much as normal, or any part of my body really. I knew it was because of my adrenaline pumping through my body, but it wouldn't last forever. I could hear the pounding of the beast's paws against the ground, and I knew they would catch me if I didn't do something. I turned sharply to my left, barely dodging a tree that was in my way. I swerved numerous ways, throwing anything I could down into the path I had been going. Whether it be leaves, branches, or vines. Panting heavily, I made another sharp right turn as I threw another group of leaves behind me. I didn't dare to look behind me. All I could see around me was trees, none of which seemed like I would be able to climb before the mutts got me. The pain in my legs started to catch up with me, igniting fires in my thighs and calves as I tried to press on. Gritting my teeth, I quickly made a left turn, and saw what looked like a ledge made from moss, vines, and dirt. I knew it was probably unstable, but I couldn't see any other way to get out of this situation.

"Hope this works!" I shouted aloud, bringing out my knife. Using what strength I had left, I leaped as high as I could. When I was close enough, I drove my knife into the dirt, praying that it would stay. Luck smiled on me. I didn't have time to celebrate though, the mutts were right behind me, I could tell by their grunts, growls, and roars. Grunting, I threw my other hand up, grabbing onto the moss with all the strength in my hand. As I began my climb, I could hear the mutts get closer and closer to the edge, driving me to go faster and faster. I used the vines to support my feet as I climbed, and heard the growling increase in volume. Looking down, I could see the mutts leaping at the bottom of the ledge, trying desperately to climb the wall and get to me. Continuing to climb, I looked back up to the top of the ledge, looking so far away to me. My strength was leaving me by the second, and the burning in my entire body was intolerable. Gritting my teeth and letting out a cry of pain, I drove my knife into the dirt over and over again, using my legs and my other arm to steadily climb up. As I neared the top, my vision started to blur, and I felt dizzy. Shaking my head, I looked down back to the beasts, and saw the source of my dizziness. A trail of blood lined the ledge, and I already knew it was mine. The world spun in and out of focus, as I struggled to find my knife hand again. Groaning, I focused all my effort into raising my arms a few more times, moving slowly up the ledge. When I finally reached the top, I simply rolled over and laid there, to exhausted from blood loss and my lack of energy to move. I breathed heavily and closed my eyes as I heard footsteps coming my way. Honestly, I didn't care anymore. I had had enough escapes for a lifetime. I was done. The last thing I heard before passing out was the crunch of a stick.


End file.
